Metal furniture



1953 B. F. HAMILTON METAL FURNITURE Filed July 24, 1950 INVENTOR. fismls EHHMILTON,

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Patented Oct. 27, 1953 METAL FURNITURE Bertis F. Hamilton, Columbus, Ind. Application July 24, 1950, Serial N 0. 175,604

2 Claims.

This invention relates to chairs, stools, and similarly constructed articles of furniture. and more particularly to articles of furniture constructed of metal.

It is an object of the invention to produce an article of furniture of the type referred to which can be simply and economically manufactured. which will be of attractive appearance, which will prove sturdy and durable in use, and which can be readily assembled, thus lending itself to shipment and storage in knocked-down condition.

In carrying out the invention I provide for the article of furniture a seat or its equivalent formed as a unitary sheet-metal stamping, having an in tegral, downwardly extending, peripheral flange reinforced and stiffened at its lower edge by an in-turned lip. As legs, I employ two pieces of metal tubing bent into a general inverted U -shape. The intermediate portions of the tubes are shaped to conform to the peripheral flange of the seat at opposite sides thereof and are bolted to the seat with the end portions of the tubing extending downwardly to form legs.

The accompanying drawing illustrates the invention: Fig. 1 is a plan view of a chair in which the invention has been embodied; Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the chair shown in Fig. 1; and Fig. 3 is a fragmental section, on an enlarged scale, taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

The invention is shown in the accompanying drawings as embodied in a chair. A sheet-metal seat It! is provided for the chair, such seat having a downwardly projecting continuous peripheral flange ll. Along the lower edge of such flange, the metal thereof is turned inwardly to form a continuous lip l2, which greatly stiffens the entire seat.

For the purpose of supporting the seat, I employ two similar lengths of metal tubing each bent into a general U-shape to provide an intermediate portion and leg-forming end portions l6 and 11. Over the intermediate portion l5, each of the tubes is altered in cross-section, preferably into a general semi-circular shape as illustrated in Fig. 3, to provide a wall I8 which conforms to the flange H at the side of the seat I both in vertical section as indicated in Fig. 3, and in plan, as shown in Fig. 1. The deformed section of each tube is pierced for the reception of bolts which also pass through holes in the flange l I and serve to clamp the intermediate section of the tube firmly to the flange. Preferably, the metal around the bolt-receiving opening in the outer wall of the tube is deflected inwardly, as indicated at 2| in Fig. 3 to form a frustoconical seat for the bolt head. Desirably, the seat 2| is deep enough that the bolt head will be completely received in the recess formed by the in Ward turning of the metal.

With the bolts 20 tightened, the inner wall ill of the intermediate tube-section is drawn firmly and stably into engagement with the seat-flange I l Because of the vertical extent of the contacting surfaces of the flange and tube-wall, and because of the stiffness imparted to the flange H by the in-turned lip [2, each of the tubular mem-- hers is held securely against rocking about a horizontal axis, thus preventing the legs on opposite sides of the chair from spreading when the chair is subjected to load.

It will be noted from Fig. 1 that over the extent engaged by the intermediate portion l5 of each tubular member the seat I0 is curved in plan, with the result that the two bolts 20 at each side of the seat are disposed at a considerable angle to each other. This arrangement tends to relieve the bolts of shearing stresses in a horizontal plane and also makes the leg-seat joint more effective in resisting any tendency of the legs on opposite sides of the chair to spread.

The chair shown in the drawing is adapted for the application of a back, which can be secured to the two rear-leg portions [1 of the tubular members. As illustrated, the back includes a support 25 formed of metal tubing bent into a general inverted U-shape and having its extreme end portions deformed in cross-section to fit against the exterior surface of the rear leg l1. Bolts 26 passing through the rear leg I 1 and the rear ends of the back-support secure the back-support flrmly in fixed position. A back 21 of any convenient type may be mounted on the back support.

The rigidity resulting from the stiffened flange II and from the extent, both vertical and horizontal, over which such flange engages the intermediate portions |5 of the leg members makes it unnecessary to provide a stretcher interconnecting the legs on opposite sides, and the rigidity of the tubular members renders unnecessary any stretcher between the front and rear legs. In stools, a cross member extending between the two front legs may be desirable as a foot-rest.

I claim as my invention:

1. In an article of furniture, a sheet-metal seat having an integral, downwardly extending, continuous peripheral flange the lower edge of which is turned inwardly to form a stiffening lip, two tubular leg-forming members of circular crosssection each bent into a general U-shape to provide an intermediate horizontal portion and two legs, the intermediate portion of each member extending along one side of the seat and being at least partially collapsed and formed to engage said flange over an area having both horizontal and vertical extent, and bolts passing through said horizontal portions and the seat-flange for clamping the intermediate portions to the seatfiange at opposite sides of the seat, said seat flange and thejlange-engaging portionof each leg-fornliing member being curved'gin- -a horizontal plane andsaid bolts being spaced apart alongsaid intermediate member-portion and disposed at a substantial angle to each other.

2. In an article of furniture, a sheet-mistaken having an integral, downwardly extendingcom tinuous peripheral flange the loweredgeofvihich is turned inwardly to form asstiffieningglip tvgo tubular leg-forming members of circular crosssection each bent into a general U-shape' to'provide an intermediate horizontal portion and two ;.-l,eg,s. ;thegintermediate 21361131011: 50f each member extending along 0118i side= ofztheriseatsand being at least partially collapsed and formed to engage said flange over an area having both horizontal and vertical extent, and bolts passing through said horizontal portions and the seat-flange for clamping the intermediate portions to the seatflange at opposite sides of the seat, said bolts having frusto-conical heads, and the metal of the intermediate portions of the tubular members be- ,ingpffset inwardly to provide jgusto oqnical re- 10 cesses regieiving siaid bolt-head's.

BERTIS F. HAMILTON.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Nuniber Name Date -,ll ,82 grwisler Oct. 4, 1898 2,306,379 Hamilton et a1 Dec. 29, 1942 2 ;'45 3,090 Guild etal Nov. 2, 1948 20 2,458,890 Booth Jan. 11, 1949 125283950 --'En'g-strom r Now-7,1950 42,576,049 :Shott 6-; ;;NoV. i20, 1951 

